Chá's Launch Party

On evening of Saturday, February 23rd, my friend and fellow Certified Tea Sommelier, Raymonde and I joined a group of tea lovers at the Yoga Tree Midtown Studio for the launch of a new tea company called "Chá".   I was excited to see what a launch party for a tea company would be like.

Would it be like the stuff you see on ET Canada? or like those star-studded film premiere parties at TIFF?  I had no idea!...so off I followed the others into the studio, ready for anything...

The Yonge and Eglinton area yoga studio carries Herbal Infusions Tea Co.'s teas.  Herbal Infusions was featured in a previous post on a tea cocktail workshop, click here to read.  Yoga and tea, a great combo!

Ah, here we are!  Where's everyone? Are we early?  No, it says start time is 6pm on the ticket...it's almost 6:20pm now...

 This is what happens when the host runs late.  You get recruited to help set up...

  (Photo: Raymonde Drolet) 

 This is more like it, let the party begin!

Some of the yummy tea infused treats.  The matcha macarons from Ruelo Patisserie, mmm, so were the blueberry ones.  We didn't make it to the cupcakes from the Itty Bitty Bakery though.  If someone reading this was at the launch party too, please leave me a comment to tell me what kind of tastiness I missed...

Dan Johanis (one of the three founders of Chá) and friend at work mixing the tea cocktails for the crowd

Menu of the tea cocktails being served and some of the tea syrups used.  Not listed was one made with Toasted Almond tea.  I really enjoyed the lemon lavender one, it was like a fizzy lavender lemonade spiked with gin.

Tea cocktail recipes were created by Dan 

Matcha and fruit cake from Furama Cake and Desserts was delicious!

People lining up to do the quiz to find out what tea type they are. Once they know their tea personality, a box of teas fitting their profile will be sent to them each month for the duration of their subscription.

The three founders of Chá, David Zhang, Matthew Woo, and Dan Johanis (who is also the Founder of Herbal Infusions Tea Co.).  They announced that 20% of Chá's profits will be donated to a charity dedicated to bringing clean and safe drinking water to people in developing nations called Charity:Water.  A fitting charity since water is known as "the mother of tea" in ancient China, for without water, there is no tea.

A great idea with heart.  It's not only nice to see when businesses give back something to charity, but that they are being transparent, clearly stating the charitable organization and how much, so they can be accountable.

 

Getting close to my turn to do the quiz.  Some of the little boxes of gifts to the attendees (nice, we do get swag!)

Finally, my turn!  Wonder which cool profile I belong to...?

 The quiz

So apparently I am a Traditionalist.  (sounds kind of boring... I thought I'd be more Alchemist or Adventurist...)  Well, I do "appreciate a good cup of premium grade traditional tea"... "whatever your cup, you'll be right at home with a comfortable cup" mmhmm, okay, true.

"You would enjoy Chamomile tea", whoa, wait a minute, I don't like Chamomile...um, that can't be right, I want a redo on this quiz! 

Oh good, there's David.  Hey, David, need a word with you... 

from Chá's Facebook album

The contents of my little gift box (for the Traditionalist tea drinker). A fridge magnet, a little glass vial of English Breakfast tea, and a card describing how to steep the tea, suggested food pairing and how the tea is good for you.

This subscription box geared to your tea profile is a neat idea.  It sets them apart from some of the other monthly subscription tea companies already out there.  Especially for someone who's new to tea, who doesn't know what they'd enjoy or even where to start.  

It was a fun evening!  I'm glad I was part of a launch of a new tea company.  It was nice to catch up with a few familiar faces that were at the party too.  Congratulations and best wishes to  David, Matthew, Dan, and rest of the staff at Chá! 

Boozy Teas: Tea Cocktail Workshop at Herbal Infusions

The Holiday season is in full swing, folks getting ready for Christmas, Hanukkah, New Year's Eve parties...pretty Christmas lights are up along Yonge Street, the big Christmas tree is up in the Eaton Centre, the malls are staying opened later for the shoppers. 

Even The Grid, Toronto's weekly magazine, had a special "Holiday Hooch" issue out this week.  Their guide to Holiday Cocktails, complete with a legend of snowmen in varying degrees of inebriation, is a survey of the city's top bars for those looking for some holiday cheer. 

So what's a tea lover to do if they want a tea cocktail?  What if they don't want to go all the way to The Comrade in Riverside for an Uncle Garth (a maple-citrus and Earl Grey tea-infused bourbon drink)?!  Sure, there's the Blueberry Tea that any bar should know how to make, but what if you fancy yourself as an amateur mixologist, love tea, and want to save some money?

Tea cocktails have been popping up everywhere lately, even though tea and alcohol has been around for a while.  Think, tea and whiskey...   

There's O5 Tea with their Cocktails, Tapas, and Tea events in Vancouver.  David's Tea brought out "The Cocktail Collection", a collection of five teas with recipe cards.  The LCBO featured some tea cocktails using Sloane Teas in their Food and Drink's Autumn issue.  I even heard a radio interview with Sabnam of The Tea Emporium on tea cocktails a few weeks ago!

You can google recipes on line, or... you can do what I did recently and go to Herbal Infusions Tea Co. for a Tea Cocktail workshop!  Only $30!  Such a deal for a fun and educational workshop!

Dan Johanis left the corporate finance world and opened the tiny modern tea shop at the north east corner of Spadina and Adelaide about three years ago.  Herbal Infusions carry many teas and tisanes.  Dan has collaborated with ChocoSol Traders in creating a Cacao Tea made with 100% organic cacao shell which comes in three different flavours.  (hmm, another thing for the chocoholic on my list...)

Some of the tea wares

Close to a dozen guests crowded into the little shop to watch mixologist, Michelle Tham and Dan work their magic.

  Michelle pours the welcome drink - Me Love Oolong Time

 Made with Orange Blossom Oolong tea syrup (made with fresh tea leaves ahead of time by Dan), Lemon Juice, and Tag No5 Vodka. 

Light oolong tea taste, well balanced and refreshing.

Interesting name,  though it sounds like something you'd hear on the streets of Da Nang......this was just a time to enjoy an adult oolong tea cocktail.  It was tasty!

The Mo'Teato was next, a volunteer helps measure and pours the Peppermint Dream syrup


 Peppermint Dream is a tisane made of peppermint and lavender blended in-house by Dan.

Add some lime juice, Bacardi Black rum and it's ready to drink.  I found myself wishing for some fresh mint leaves...but it was good.

Next we were transported to the Polynesian islands with Lomi Lomi Tea-ki Tiki

 

Lomi Lomi syrup, pineapple juice, Bacardi Superior Rum and Coconut milk ~ tasted like a piña colada. 

Finally, an experimental Lavender Gin Cocktail

Victoria Gin was stirred in ice to chill.  Apparently, you shouldn't be shaking your alcohol, if you want a good, smooth drink.  Shaking it in ice breaks up the surface area, since you're in essence whipping air into the liquid.

So... what does that say about James Bond who likes his martinis shaken, not stirred?  Hmm, maybe that's why the franchise needed to add Daniel Craig to give a dash of toughness back to Bond...

In case you were wondering what that vessel on the bar is... it is a Prohibition era Martini shaker disguised as a tea kettle.  

This was a strong, herbaceous (pink Tibetan Lavender), booze forward cocktail.  By now, I don't remember what else went in there, and my hand writing had become illegible.  Maybe I should just stick with plain tea...  hmm.. nah! 

This pretty drink's got no name.  Perhaps the Lavender Flamingo?  Pretty in Pink?  Can you think of a cool name for it?  I'll pass it on to Dan!


Herbal Infusions will be conducting two more Tea Cocktail workshops:
Thursday, December 6th @ 6pm
Sunday, December 9th @ 2pm.

Space is limited.  RSVP at dan@herbalinfusions.ca or call Dan at (416) 900-6942.